Sixty-eight percent of the raw material used to manufacture paper in Colombia comes from recycled fibers

July 12, 2023

Colombia’s commitment to manufacture paper under the principles of environmental sustainability is growing. In this issue, the ANDI’s Pulp, Paper and Cardboard Chamber explains which raw materials our country uses in the production of such an important material.

paper manufacture, paper mill, paper fibers, Colombian paper industry, Más Colombia, ANDI, Asociación Nacional de Empresarios, Colombia’s National Association of Entrepreneurs

The Colombian paper industry works strategically in favor of sustainability based on the use of sustainable fibers and manufacturing processes that seek the efficient use of resources to ensure availability for future generations and, in general, for the entire production chain, in line with the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

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Based on a principle of responsible generation of its products, which takes into account the efficient use of energy and water, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in its processes, and technified waste management, the sector’s commitment to the environment has a fundamental component, which is the use of sustainable cellulose fibers to manufacture paper and cardboard.

According to Isabel Cristina Riveros, Director of Cámara Pulpa Papel y Cartón, ANDI, “the recycling of paper and cardboard is not infinite due to the biodegradable characteristic of the fibers that limits its recycling to a maximum of 7 times, so it is necessary to incorporate virgin fiber to the process. In 2022, 68% of the pulp came from the recycling of paper waste; 11% from sugar cane bagasse pulp, agro-industrial waste from sugar production predominantly in Valle del Cauca, and 19% from virgin wood fiber from forest plantations certified in responsible management, located between the coffee-growing region and northern Cauca”.

Isabel Cristina Riveros, Director of the Cámara Pulpa Papel y Cartón -ANDI- Asociación Nacional de Empresarios de Colombia (National Association of Colombian Entrepreneurs)

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In this sense, the work of the country’s recyclers, and the recycling chain itself, has become the backbone of inputs for this industry, which in 2022 consumed 1,092,990 tons of secondary fiber from usable waste, added to 151. 659 tons of virgin sugarcane bagasse pulp, a source of fiber with which Colombia is a pioneer internationally, and 417,865 tons of wood pulp from forests certified to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards and endorsed by the Sociedad General de Supervisiones (SGS) Colombia.

“The latter endorsement guarantees its buyers that the wood originates from certified forests whose management is done in accordance with the correct social, economic and environmental standards”, states the Director of the Cámara Pulpa Papel y Cartón – ANDI, reporting that in 2022 it reached a production of 1,316,610 tons of paper and cardboard, of which 781,173 tons correspond to packaging papers, 279,402 tons to papers for domestic and sanitary use, 201,554 tons of printing and writing papers and 54,481 for other uses.

According to the executive director of the Cámara Pulpa Papel y Cartón Industry, “another great commitment of our industry is to continue generating actions to support the development and consolidation of the 2018-2038 strategy of forest-commercial plantations, which pursue sustainable production for the future of paper”.